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If I had to make the decision today to choose a Linux flavour, I'd probably go with Ubuntu 17.10. They've dropped Unity and gone back to Gnome, and also allow other WMs like KDE. I haven't been impressed with the (in)stability of Cinnamon on Mint, and there's also the question of security since the Mint team has made some questionable decisions forking from the main debian branch.

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Currently running Ubuntu Mate 16.04. Quite happy with it but keep coming across other Houdini users using Mint.

I started using Linux Mint because Unity is crap. I used Ubuntu GNOME for a while but it was a second class citizen in the Ubuntu ecosystem which got old fast. I haven't seen any other benefit to Linux Mint other than the interface is better than Unity. Once Ubuntu goes back to GNOME for an LTS release I'll probably move back to Ubuntu. That should be with Ubuntu 18.04 LTS.

14 hours ago, art3mis said:

There is a Mate flavor of Mint as well but my understanding is that in general, Ubuntu is more 'Mac like' and Mint more 'Windows like'.

The interfaces have some quirks that are reminiscent of other platforms but under the hood they're exactly the same. If you like one interface over another then use it but beyond that there's no difference.

14 hours ago, art3mis said:

Other than that Mint apparently handles PPA's better than Ubuntu.

They handle them practically the same. One has a slightly different GUI to add them but most people add them through the terminal so it's a moot point.

14 hours ago, art3mis said:

Any other reasons why Mint might be a better option for Houdini users?

I would say it's a worse option now that GNOME is going to be a first class citizen again in Ubuntu. Either way though the differences are going to be minimal. Just be sure you're going with something that has sufficient support for your needs.